1. Iowa State Cyclones (13-3, 3-1) – The Cyclones balanced out a close 74-73 loss on the road Wednesday to Baylor with an impressive 86-81 home victory over Kansas on Saturday, handing the Jayhawks their first conference loss in the process. Iowa State was fortunate to get within one point of Baylor after falling behind by as much as 15 points earlier in the game, but they performed much better against the Jayhawks, going 31-of-61 from the field overall while outscoring Kansas 31-19 in transition points. All five starters finished in double figures, and were led by guard Naz Long who finished with 20 points and five rebounds on 7-of-12 shooting. The Cyclones have a relatively easy slate this week with Kansas State and Texas Tech, and should continue to roll.
2. Kansas Jayhawks (14-3, 3-1) – Bill Self’s team had their first loss of the season Saturday that didn’t involve a poor offensive performance, unlike their losses to Kentucky and Temple earlier in the season that saw the team score 40 and 52 points, respectively. The Jayhawks were simply outscored by the Cyclones despite shooting 42.7 percent as a team. Kansas couldn’t keep up with Iowa State’s pace, and were timid with dribble penetration, as evidenced by their 10 free-throw attempts as a team. Still, a semi-impressive 67-57 win at home against Oklahoma State on Monday saved the week from being a total disaster. Sophomore guard Frank Mason III is averaging 14.5 points and 4.7 rebounds per game in conference play, and seems to be growing more confident as the season stretches on. The Jayhawks have a big showdown tonight at home against Oklahoma, followed by a trip to Texas on Saturday.
3. West Virginia Mountaineers (15-3, 3-2) – The Mountaineers started the week off well enough with a resounding 86-65 win at home against Oklahoma, but turned around and lost 77-50 on the road to a Texas team that had lost it’s two previous games by a combined 32 points. West Virginia suffocated the Sooners into giving up 27 points off of 22 turnovers, while only giving up nine of their own in the process. The Mountaineers got into foul trouble early against the Longhorns, but were still able to force 19 turnovers by game’s end. Unfortunately, they shot just 24 percent as a team. Mountaineers leading scorer Juwan Stanley finished with just three points and zero assists in the losing effort. Time will tell if the loss and poor offensive output was a fluke or not. West Virginia will look to erase the memories in Austin with two winnable games this week against TCU and Kansas State.
4. Oklahoma Sooners (14-3, 3-1) – Oklahoma rebounded from the dismal loss at West Virginia with a resounding 82-65 win against rival Oklahoma State on Saturday. Junior guard Buddy Hield was unstoppable as he lit the Cowboys up for 27 points on a perfect 10-of-10 from the field, including 4-of-4 from three point range. The Sooners also held the Oklahoma State to 37 percent shooting while forcing the Cowboys to rely heavily on perimeter shots. Oklahoma has their first shot at Kansas tonight in Lawrence and then travels to Waco this Saturday to take on Baylor. Anything is possible for this Sooners team if Hield can continue to stay hot.
5. Kansas State Wildcats (11-7, 4-1) – The Wildcats make a surprising jump to the fifth spot this week after taking down both Texas Tech and Baylor, and now actually possess the conference’s best record in league play. The Wildcats were able to overcome a 14-point deficit in their 63-61 win against the Bears, finally grabbing and maintaining the lead in the closing minutes. The Wildcats shot 50 percent as a team while holding Baylor to 38 percent, who also went 8-of-23 from three-point range. Kansas State senior forward Nino Williams led the Wildcats with 18 points and seven rebounds. Bruce Weber’s team begins a tough four-game stretch on Tuesday at Iowa State before coming home to host Oklahoma State on Saturday.
6. Baylor Bears (13-4, 2-3) – While the Bear’s 74-73 win over Iowa State was cause for head coach Scott Drew’s team to celebrate, the following loss to Kansas State provided yet another example of Baylor’s inconsistent play since their conference opening loss against Oklahoma. Surprisingly enough, Baylor is playing some of their best defense in years, but currently lack a go-to scorer. Senior forward Royce O’Neale is just .03 points per game away from being the Bears fifth starter averaging double-figures. The Bears have an awkwardly-placed cupcake game against NAIA school Huston-Tillotson on Wednesday before their rematch with Oklahoma on Saturday.
7. Oklahoma State Cowboys (12-5, 2-3) – The Cowboys proved yet again this week that they will only go as far as LeBryan Nash and Phil Forte will take them. The Cowboys hung tough with Kansas through most of the game last Monday, but were hurt by Forte’s absence for most of the second half after mildly injuring his leg. In their blowout loss to Oklahoma, the usually sharp-shooting Forte and his counterpart combined to score 26 points on 9-of-26 shooting from the field. Senior point guard Anthony Hickey Jr. stepped up to chip in 14 points and eight rebounds, but it wasn’t enough to match Buddy Hield’s perfect shooting day for the Sooners. The Cowboys will need a solid third option if they hope to stay in the conference title race and earn an at-large bid. Oklahoma State hosts Texas Tech on Wednesday before heading up to Manhattan to take on the Wildcats on Saturday.
8. Texas Longhorns (13-4, 2-2) – The Longhorns big victory against West Virginia in their only game last week appeared to be a big step back in the right direction for a team that was expected to contend for a conference title after sophomore guard Isaiah Taylor returned from a wrist injury. The team’s chemistry has seemingly returned, and the Longhorns dominated the Mountaineers physically while forcing them into bad shots for much of the afternoon. Junior center Cameron Ridley’s game-leading 19 points were a welcomed factor after only scoring a combined 7 points in his previous two outings, both Texas losses. The Longhorns will look to stay on track tonight against TCU in Ft. Worth.
9. TCU Horned Frogs (14-3, 1-3) – The first three games of conference play were a big reality check for this Horned Frogs team, as they were 13-0 before their losses to West Virginia, Kansas State, and Baylor. TCU was able to pick up their first conference win against Texas Tech on Saturday, and while that is certainly nothing to brag about, it provided the team some much-needed validation after three straight losses in which they were mostly competitive. Senior guard Kyan Anderson (13.9 PPG) continues to shoulder the load for a TCU team that lacks any other scorer averaging 8.8 points or more per game. TCU hosts Texas tonight followed by a trip to West Virginia on Saturday.
10. Texas Tech Red Raiders (10-8, 0-5) – The Red Raiders simply can’t score, and haven’t surpassed 54 points since a loss to West Virginia back on Jan. 5th. They were competitive in a loss to Kansas State on Wednesday, but were blown out at home by TCU 62-42 on Saturday in a game that saw Tech score just 14 points by halftime. The Red Raiders finished the game with just 11 field goals out of 48 attempts. Head coach Tubby Smith’s 0-5 conference start is his worst in his 24-year career. Texas Tech will hope to correct their shooting woes on Wednesday at Oklahoma State before returning home Saturday to face Iowa State.
